Miniseries being more insect-like? I'm very vague on partial memories of this miniseries, since I never watched it in full(too horrible IMO), but I remember their torsoes were nothing insectish and still looks quite like the Lynch one, perhaps more triangular than rectangular.
Lynch 'thopter:
Best I could find of a miniseries 'thopter:
Notice it's essentially just a less sqarish Lynch 'thopter, with bigger(yet still fixed
) wings.
The torso is about what a 'thopter should have though...if only they had a budget or brains to make flapping, scaled wings.
Sexy 'thopter?!
Made it a URL 'cause it's a bit big and...distracting.
http://www.ef-uk.net/models/aircraft-un ... gle-04.jpg
Now this is defeintely the best design I've seen!
Take the dragonfly, lop off its head(no need for another compartment to complecate things, the passengers are in the torso) and voila, you've got yourself a basic helicopter with wings.
It's curious, but I can't find any conclusive allusions of 'thopters to be insect-like.
Dune:
Supposed refrences to 'thopter being insect-like:
An unmarked ornithopter squatted nearby, humming softly on standby like a somnolent insect.
Notice it's the humming sound of the engines and electronics that compares it to an insect.
The smuggler's spice factory with its parent carrier and ring of drone ornithopters came over a lifting of dunes like a swarm of insects following its queen.
Looks better...or does it? Lets see another case of insects, shall we?
Paul nodded, maintaining the necessary silence, moved past the man and up the dune slope. At the crest, he glanced back, saw the troop scattering like a flight of insects, their robes fluttering.
Later on we can find a bit better, if not conclusive evidence, though these two merely copmpare to the "waiting to spring/pounce" feeling.
CoD:
A single ornithopter sat facing the far wall, crouched there like an insect waiting to spring.
HoD:
She kept her gaze on the 'thopter. It hovered in the distance, then returned to settle gently onto a patch of worm-smoothed sand nearby. She could smell the lubricants and the sickly acridity of the 'thopter's fuel.
The thing was a giant insect nestled on the sand, waiting to pounce upon her.
ChD:
The best evidence is only found here:
In a fragile mood, Odrade watched the 'thopters settle to the hard-glazed surface, wing fans folding back into pod sleeves -- each craft like a sleeping insect.
An insect designed in its own likeness by a mad robot.
This quote implies more of the wings being retractable and folding, probably like a beetle.
Notice the last line of the quote refers to the line above it for the "insect-like" look.
Other objects described as insect-like:
Dune:
Here we see a spice-factory compared to an insect(but a centi\milipede rather than flying):
A clattering sound lifted from the factory crawler below them. It turned on its treads like a giant insect, lumbered toward the rocks.
And nuk...Spice silos:
The design of the spice silos in the yard was as old as Rakis: oval tanks on tall legs, metal and plaz insects waiting stilt-legged to leap upon their prey.
In conclusion, I find the lack of evidence for 'thopters being really insect-like in appearance quite alarming considering this popular view of them as such.
The only mostly conclusive evidence comes from ChD, which might lead to thinking that, if indeed FH saw them as insect-like in appearance, he must've only developed this notion later on, in the final novel of the series.
In fact, given the name of this type of craft, ornithopter, the image that should come to mind is that of a rotor-less helicopter with wings, a bird-thopter.